Ever the Same
by Sharinganblossom
Summary: Just let me hold you while you're falling apart-You may need me there to carry all your weight.


**Title: **Ever the Same

**Pairing: **Sophie and Howl

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Howl's Moving Castle.

**Summary:** Just let me hold you while you're falling apart—you may need me there to carry all your weight.

XXX

Howl and Sophie both, by nature, were very stubborn people.

They could not agree on dinner because one would want soup and the other would want to fry up something meaty.

When Howl insisted on Markl practicing his magic, Sophie insisted that he was still a child and needed a break to _be _one.

Sophie wanted to trim Heen's hair so that he would be able to see where he was walking. Howl wanted her to leave the dog alone, as he saw hair cutting to be a vile and cruel thing.

Calcifer groaned from his position next to Markl as they both listened to the couple debating once more. Markl cast a glance in their direction before he looked down at the fire demon.

"You know," Markl said. "It's hard to believe that they're actually in love with each other. They never seem to get along."

Calcifer bobbed beside him, saying, "Actually, they get along pretty well. They're just both stubborn is all."

The boy merely shrugged, carrying Calcifer and his bag outside into the yard.

Howl and Sophie meanwhile...

"Why are you being so unreasonable, Howl?" Sophie asked, fighting to keep her voice at an indoor level. "I mean, honestly, I'm only going to the market. And you said that you were going to be busy today, so why do you insist on coming? One of us has to be here to supervise Markl anyway."

"Markl has been left alone hundreds of times and he was fine, so don't use that excuse." Howl responded. He placed his hands on his hips before continuing, "And he has a fire demon here to keep him safe. You, however, do not."

"So you're trying to protect me? That's sweet, Howl, but I'm only going to pick up a few things. I am perfectly capable of doing it alone."

Sophie picked up her basket and her hat and headed towards the door. The castle was landed just outside of Market Chipping. Howl grabbed her wrist as she moved past him.

"Well, I don't want you going alone. Market Chipping still isn't a very safe place, even with the war ended and the Witch of the Waste old and senile."

She pulled her wrist free, feeling quite angry now. "Howl, would you leave me alone? I'll be fine by myself!"

Howl's eyes widened before a look of sadness passed over his face. Sophie gave a silent gasp, realizing her error. She almost never got angry enough to yell, especially at Howl. And Howl almost always had a pleasant look on his face, even in the most dire of situations. This argument was different from the others—something had shifted.

Howl didn't say a word, simply turning and walking slowly up the stairs. Sophie heard a door shut, thinking that the wizard went into his room.

She started for the stairs, wanting to once again play the pacifist and heal the tension, but she stopped. What was the point in apologizing to Howl if he was being overly protective? As of late, all he's been doing was hovering over her and contradicting her judgment.

So instead, she squared her shoulders, secured her hat over her silver hair, and left for the market.

XXX

Sophie returned, not even an hour later, with her basket full. Calcifer was in the hearth and Markl was on the couch in front of him with Heen on his lap. Howl was nowhere to be found.

She hung her hat on it's post and walked over to the sink, placing her basket next to it.

"Did you break Howl, Sophie?" Markl asked.

Sophie rolled her eyes, saying, "No, he's just throwing another one of his tantrums. He made the biggest fuss over me going to the market alone."

She heard Calcifer say, "Well, I don't blame him."

She whirled around. "What? How can you not? He was being completely ridiculous!"

If Calcifer could shrug, she suspected that he would have done it then. "To Howl, you're the most important thing in the world to him. I should know, I had the guy's heart."

Sophie could have melted, but she stood her ground. "That's still no excuse for him being so overly protective."

Calcifer merely amended, "Try to be patient Sophie. It was only recently that his view on life completely changed. To him, everything revolves around you instead of himself. He risked his life and nearly died trying to protect you and the rest of us from being blown to bits in the war. It'll probably take him a bit before he realizes that it's okay to let you do things like shopping on your own."

Now, Sophie did melt. She couldn't help but completely understand. After all, she had risked everything trying to get Howl to come out of harms way and to return his heart to him.

She sighed before she began to trudge her way up the stairs.

She missed Calcifer saying, "See, Markl? I told you she would apologize."

XXX

Sophie carefully knocked on his bedroom door.

"Come in," She heard him say.

She slowly opened the door, seeing the familiar cluttered space. The wizard was on his bed, mixing together some ingredients that she didn't recognize.

Howl glanced up at her, looking a little surprised. She was glad that his face seemed pleasant again instead of heartbroken.

"Sophie! What's wrong?"

She bit her lip, closing the door behind her and leaning against it. "I'm sorry, Howl. For yelling at you. I wasn't trying to be mean."

He smiled a little, gathering the things on his bed and tossing them on the floor and out of view. "There's no need for apology. I realize that I must seem like I'm crowding you. When you got angry, I I worried that maybe I was crowding you a bit too much."

Sophie's shoulders fell, and everything seemed to come out of her. "It's not that, it's just that—well, you won't let me do anything on my own. It's like you don't trust me or you think that I'm so delicate that I can't handle myself. And, I just—I'm just sorry!"

Howl laughed, standing and coming closer to her. "Sophie, dear, you don't need to be sorry. Of course I trust you and of course I know that you can take care of yourself—if anything, you've proven that much. And I apologize for not leaving you be...I just worry about you."

Sophie looked up at Howl who was now standing over her. He touched her cheek and she sighed. She said, "Calcifer is of the notion that you're afraid of losing me."

She gasped when Howl's lips were suddenly on hers, hard and desperate. His arms were even around her waist, clutching her close to him. Sophie could count on one hand all the times that she and Howl had kissed or even touched each other intimately. She never doubted that he loved her because he always showed it, but the physical touching was never at an extreme.

His mouth left hers and she inhaled deeply. He said, "Of course I am...god, of course I am. If I lost you, I don't know what I would do."

Sophie stroked his cheeks, his hair, his shoulders. She said, "Howl, I'm not going anywhere. Never. You don't have anything to worry about."

Howl laughed, leaning his forehead against hers. "Thank you, Sophie..."

She smiled at him. "And I'll try to be a little more patient with you...if you really want to come shopping with me, then by all means you may."

He laughed loudly at that. "Thank you, again. Right now, I just want you to let me hold you."

Sophie only giggled. "But of course, Howl."

XXX

This is probably my favorite movie, so I felt the need to pay tribute to it. Tell me if you liked it or not?


End file.
